Count von Viscount
The Count von Viscount is one of the main villains in the Ruby Redfort series. His real name is Victor von Leyden. Biography Background Nothing is known about his childhood, except that a relative of his (possibly his his great-great grandfather, who Martha Fairbank told about her adventures) told him about how pirates used to store their treasures in the Sibling caves.Ruby Redfort, Take Your Last Breath, Chapter 44 The Count used to be a filmmaker, but the critics trashed his films, because they were too dark and strange. He was famous for his theatrical disguises and creating characters, which he did with Homer Pinkerton. He was the creative one and Homer did the illusions and inventions. One film he directed was The Shadow's Touch. Marnie Novak, who starred in the film, was his protégée. When Marnie had her illegitimate child, he stayed close to her and gave the baby his surname, as a kindness to Marnie. He tried to teach the child acting, but she was not a talented actress. He then taught her special effects make-up, which she was passionate about. When Marnie moved to Australia after nobody would offer her work, the Count stopped directing films. He fell out with Homer Pinkerton and there were rumors that he left the country. He then became a much more successful criminal than he was a director. His crimes are usually very theatrical and dramatic, like some old B movie, which is a nod to his past as a movie director. The Books'''' Ruby is the only Spectrum agent (other than Bradley Baker) that has seen the Count, and lived to tell the tale. Look Into My Eyes Baby Face Marshall kidnaps Ruby and takes her to the Count. The Count questions her about Spectrum and tells her about Bradley Baker and LB. He then gets the glass key for the Jade Buddha's case off her, and tells her that the room will turn into a giant hourglass and bury her in green sand. This mimicks the scene in the Wizard of Oz, where the Wicked Witch of the West says that Dorothy will die when all the sand has run therough the hourglass. The Count considers his version to be better than the original.Ruby Redfort, Look Into My Eyes, Chapter 37 He then poses as Herr Gustav at the museum launch, and later makes his way to the museum basement, where he shines a laser light device into the eyes of the Jade Buddha. When Ruby shows up there, he tells Baby Face to kill her. He then tries to steal the Jade Buddha, but Ruby throws her shoe at his face after she escapes from Baby Face, so he does not manage to in time. The Count then disappears. Take Your Last Breath The Count masterminds the pirate attacks to keep people out of the Sibling waters. He finds Ruby when she makes her way into the Sibling caves, and puts her into a pool of paralysing jellyfish, with an opening for sharks to come through, with the help of Mr Darling. He then goes to try and find the Fairbank Rubies, but Ruby and Clancy have already found them. They give them to him. He has already extracted truth serum from the octopus, but every vial is broken except one. However, he says "one is enough".Ruby Redfort, Take Your Last Breath, Chapter 47 Ruby has been thrown in to the tidal pool where the Sea Whisperer is, and he says he will only kill one child a day, so he does not kill Clancy. He also thinks it will be more dramatic to leave one witness.He then disappears. Catch Your Death The Count does not appear in this book. Feel the Fear The Count comes to the rooftop of the Hotel Circus Grande to steal the Lucite tag attached to the 8 key. He steps off the roof and disappears. Pick Your Poison Blink and You Die The Count is behind most of the crimes throughout the books. He is the ringmaster of Hogtrotter, Baby Face Marshall, Lorelei von Leyden and Valerie Capaldi. Appearance The Count has a "melodramatic-looking" face, and looks a bit like a Gothic villain. He has slicked-back grey hair and sideburns. He has sharp teeth and a pointed nose. He is tall. The Count always wears black, usually an old-fashioned-looking black suit with a black coat. He always wears the same pointed black handmade, Italian leather shoes.Ruby Redfort, Take Your Last Breath, Chapter 43 Frederick Lutz comments that his style is "elegant but creepy", and that he wore a cravat and an old-fashioned pocket watch when he (Lutz) knew him.Ruby Redfort, Blink and You Die, Chapter 17 He has a very distinctive cologne.Ruby Redfort, Blink and You Die, Chapter 22 Personality and Relationships The Count is usually very charming to people but does not form friendships. He does not regard people's fellings, sometimes leaving his accomplices for dead (for example Mr Darling) and usually prefers to work alone. He appears to enjoy committing crimes and likes to "move the goalposts" and creep people out, according to Clancy. Ruby says that he likes to plant ideas in people's heads, as he knows they grow and take off in different directions.Ruby Redfort, Blink and You Die, Chapter 7 He is very unpredictable and cruel. Spectrum says "you know it's the Count when he's dangling you over a bubbling volcano instead of dropping you right in". In Blink and You Die, it is revealed that the Count used to have two friends: Marnie Novak and Homer Pinkerton. However, he presumably lost contact with Marnie after she moved to Australia, then fell out with Homer, and does not make any new friends. Throughout the books, the Count has a lot of encounters with Ruby, and sometimes seems to enjoy her company, although he usually tries to kill her. By the last book, he admits he needs her alive and confides in her a little, although he does not ''like her, and Ruby sometimes teases him, although she is still scared of him. Ruby and the Count have a strange relationship. References Category:Antagonists Category:Characters